bill    -+o     provide^ 


Library 

OF  THE 

University  of  NortK  Carolina 


THE  LINnCAV  DATTCD.Onv 

C 

FOR  USE  ONLY  IN 


Given  as  a 


THE  NORTH  CAROLINA  COLLECTION 


Form  No.  A  -368 


OF 


fm 


On  the  Bill  to  provide  for  the  establishment  of 
a  State  Hospital  for  the  Insane  in  North 
Carolina;  delivered  in  the  House  of  Com- 
mons, December  21sf.,  1848. 


Mr.  R.  said,  that  in  contributing  his  humble  aid  to- 
wards the  accomplishment  of  the  purpose  proposed  by  the 
Bill  before  the  House,  he  could  truly  say  he  never  per- 
formed a  more  agreeable  duty,  as  a  public  man.  It  ac- 
corded with  his  views  of  duty  as  a  representative,  his 
ense  of  State  pride  as  a  North  Carolinian,  and  his  feel- 
ngs  of  humanity  as  a  man.  The  object  of  government, 
(said  Mr.  R.)  is  to  take  care  of  all.  And  the  JF^presen- 
Lative  of  a  confiding  and  generous  people  can  perform 
no  more  welcome  task,  than  that  of  providing  for  a  miti- 
gation of  one  of  the  most  awful  calamities  visited  upon 
our  race.  "Tis  true,  those  bereft  of  reason  are  discon- 
nected with  the  political  influences  which  make  and  un- 
make public  men  ;  they  have  no  agency  in  sending  us 
here,  in  elevating  us  to  still  higher  places,   or  in  visiting 


/'. 


p*«f»1 


eenfetire  upon  u=>  for  what  may  be  our  [misdeeds.  But 
whilst  this  consideration  does  not  release  us  from  the 
obligations  of  duty,  what  a  noble  opportunity  does  it  at 
the  same  time  afford  us,  for  the  exercise  of  disinterested 
good.  To  our  pride  as  North  Carolinians,  this  measure 
appeals  in  the  most  forcible  and  patriotic  language. 
North  Carolina  is  the  last  of  the  old  thirteen,  with  the 
exception  of  Delaware,  that  has  not  made  provision  for 
the  indigent  insane.  Shall  we  allow  this  reproach  of  in- 
sensibility to  human  suffering  longer  to  rest  upon  our 
name  ?  So  far  from  shunning  the  responsibility  of  this 
measure,  we  ought  rather  to  rejoice  at  the  opportunity 
it  affords  us,  of  vindicating  the  generosity  of  our  people, 
nnd  elevating  the  character  of  our  State.  To  our  feel- 
ings of  humanity  as  men,  the  appeal  is  irresistible.  And 
it  is  indeed  a  consoling  reflection,  that  amid  the  din  and 
confusion  of  political  strife,  we  may  here  for  a  while  at 
least,  find  a  resting  place,  and  engage  in  a  work  calcu- 
lated to  still  all  the  angry  passions  of  our  nature  ;  we 
may  for  a  time,  pause  in  our  partizan  struggles  and  vie 
with  each  other  in  doing  the  work  of  good. 

In  this  age  of  discovery  and  improvement,  with  the 
recorded  experience  of  so  many  countries,  and  such  a 
length  of  time,  it  would  be  labor  lost,  to  attempt  to  prove, 
that  these  institutions  for  the  especial  benefit  of  the  in- 
sane, with  buildings  and  fixtures  erected  with  a  peculiar 
view  to  the  purpose  contemplated,  and  under  the  control 
and  management  of  those  exclusively  devoted  to  such 
duties,  are  better  calculated  to  restore  those  who  are  not 
incurable,  and  to  administer  to  the  comfort  of  those  who 
are,  then  any  other  system  ever  yet  devised.  The  great 
utility  and  incomparable  blessings  of  these  institutions 
are  not  to  be  established  by  any  process  of  logical  deduc- 
tion. They  do  not  rest  on  any  learned  and  plausibio 
theories  of  the  physiologist  and  the  physician  ;  nor  on  the 
fanciful  and  ingenious  speculations  of  the  phrenologist  and 
metaphysician.  They  are  confirmed  by  the  facts  of  in- 
ductive experience,  by  the  record?  of  statistical  data  care* 


fully  preserved  ;  a  knowledge  ol'  which  places  the  matter 
beyond  controversy. 

These  statistical  data  prove  conclusively,  that  iii  most 
cases,  insanity  proceeds  from  physical  disease,  acting 
through  neglect  or  improper  treatment  upon  the  natural 
functions  of  the  brain.  How  apparent  then,  must  it  be 
to  every  one,  who  has  witnessed  much  of  the  sufferings, 
and  difficulty  of  treatment  of  mere  physical  disease,  that 
this  malady  of  the  mind,  depending  in  a  great  degree  on 
physical  derangement,  requires  a  degree  of  care,  of 
knowledge,  of  unremitting  attention,  of  peculiar  capa- 
city on  the  part  of  those  entrusted  with  its  relief,  that 
the  ordinary  physician  has  neither  the  time,  the  ability, 
nor  the  adaptation  of  character  to  apply  to  it.  It  re- 
quires a  peculiar  endowment  oi'  moral  as  well  as  intellec- 
tual faculties,  to  "  minister  to  a  mind  diseased."  This 
kind  of  talent  is  rare  ;  but  thanks  to  a  kind  Providence, 
such  is  the  expansive  and  prolific  nature  of  the  human 
mind,  that  the  supply  has  thus  far  kept  pace  with  the 
demand,  which  the  benevolence  of  government  has  crea- 
ted. This  remarkable  kind  of  talent  however,  flourishes, 
and  finds  a  theatre  for  its  exercise,  not  in  the  crowded 
thorough-fares  of  commerce,  not  in  the  turmoil  and  agi- 
tation of  worldly  employment,  not  in  gay  saloons  of  fash- 
ion ;  but  in  the  quiet  and  partially  isolated  retirement 
of  nature.  Unpretending,  benevolent,  and  gentle  in  its 
character,  it  shrinks  from  rude  contact  with  the  noisy 
world.  Hence  it  is,  that  these  institutions  for  the  relief 
of  the  insane,  must  assume  a  regulation  somewhat  pater- 
nal and  domestic  in  its  character.  Genial  air,  cheerful 
prospects,  and  healthful  exercises,  are  indispensable  to 
their  successful  operation.  In  a  country  of  such  prac- 
tical habits,  and  of  such  sparse  population  as  ours,  such 
requirements  as  these  I  have  mentioned,  are  even  for  the 
affluent,  beyond  the  reach  of  private  enterprise  ;  and  as 
for  the  indigent,  charity  feels  that  its  duty  is  performed 
in  merely  "  feeding  the  hungry  and  clothing  the  poor." 
It  requires  the  sanction  of  government  to  provide  perma- 


^> 


neutjv  for  the  wants  ol  those  who  appeal  to  us  only 
tarough  their  maniac  cries  ;  and  who  usually  excite  our 
horrors  as  much  or  more,  than  they  do  our  sympathies. 
Government  owes  it  not  only  to  the  destitute  maniac,  to 
provide  i or  his  sufferings,  but  it  owes  it  to  the  more  for- 
tunate, t  >  protect  (hem.  from  the  horrifying  spectacle  of 
an  aberration  of  intellect  in  their  follow  beings.  And  in 
accomplishing  so  benificent  a  purpose,  for  both  the  sane 
and  the  insane,  can  it,  ought  it  to  hesitate,  in  imposing 
the  paltry  burthens  upon  those  more  highly  favoured  by 
the  God  of  nature,  necessary  for  their  own,  as  well  as  for 
the  good  of  their  stricken  brethren  1 

The  system  now  generally  pursued  for  the  treatment 
of  the  insane,  in  nearly  all  the  States  of  this  Union,  as 
well  as  in  all  civilized  countries,  belongs  to  the  discove- 
ry of  modern  science  and  to  the  progress  of  modern  im- 
provement. Until  within  the  period  of  the  existence  of 
our  own  government,  young  as  it  is,  the  old  plan  of  the 
dark  ages — which  grew  out  of  the  idea,  that  those  bereft 
of  reason  were  the  victims  of  God's  especial  displeasure, 
and  therefore  had  no  claims  on  man's  sympathy — of 
treating  the  insane  as  outcasts,  was  the  only  one  known. 
The  dark  and  noisome  cell,  the  chain  and  the  hand  cuff, 
the  bar  and  the  bolt,  lash  and  the  torture,  the  scanty 
meal  and  the  time-worn  vesture,  were,  for  ages,  the  por- 
tion of  these  victims  of  misfortune.  This  cruel  system, 
and  the  false  idea  upon  which  it  rested,  are  now,  and  it 
is  hoped,  forever  rejected,  as  unwise,  unfeeling,  unchris- 
tian. JNew  light  upon  this,  as  upon  nearly  every  other 
branch  ot  knowledge,  has  dawned  upon  the  world.  The 
discovery  of  the  philanthropic  Pinel,  during  the  excesses 
of  the  French  Revolution,  whose  horrors  were  so  natu- 
rally productive  of  insanity — that  "kindness  and  firm- 
ness"  were  the  great  agents  in  relieving  and  alleviating 
the  miseries  of  derangement — first  gave  the  impetus  to 
that  benevolent  system,  which  has  dried  up  so  main- 
tears,  healed  so  many  wounded  hearts,  and  soothed  ho 
many  pangs  of  suffering.     With   rapid   slfid^Si,  this  ha- 


mane  and  wis«  system  has  marched  ®ver  the  Christian 
world.  France,  unrivaled  as  she  ever  is  in  science;  Eng- 
land, foremost  as  she  always  is  in  deeds  of  greatness  and 
glory,  and  the  States  of  this  Union,  the  wonder  and  ad- 
miration of  the  world,  as  they  are,  in  adventure,  enter* 
prise,  and  improvement,  have  reared  this  benevolent 
structure  upon  sure  foundations,  and  in  cementing  it 
with  the  tears  of  sympathy,  have  provided  tor  the  wants 
and  sufferings  of  millions  yet  unborn. 

Experience,  that  teaeher  whose  precepts  carry  proof, 
and  frequently  conviction,  in  their  very  utterance,  has 
established  beyond  controversy,  the  fact,  that  brute  force, 
physical  restraint,  and  personal  severity,  instead  of  re- 
lieving, only  tend  to  aggravate  the  tortures  of  the  mani- 
ac. The  mind  of  man,  whether  sane  or  insane,  whether 
aspiring  in  its  loftiest  flight  to  the  sublime  and  the  infin« 
ite,  or  whether  clouded  in  its  vision  by  the  dark  curtain 
of  despair,  can  not  be  chained  and  tethered  by  human 
force.  It  came  from  God,  and  nothing  short  of  the  fiat 
of  heaven  can  chain  it  down  to  earth.  Deprive  it,  in  its 
dark  state  of  gloom,  of  those  genial  influences  which  na- 
ture alone,  aided  by  those  heavenly  qualities  of  gentleness 
and  sympathy,  can  administer  ;  and  in  the  paroxisms  of 
its  own  phrenzied  energy,  it  shrinks  back  within  itself, 
and  literally  devours  its  own  existence.  On  the  other 
hand,  a  proper  regard  to  physical  and  mental  culture  at 
the  same  time,  if  applied  in  season,  rarely  fails  of  afford, 
ing  relief.  Change  of  scene  and  association,  genial  food, 
personal  comfort,  balmy  air,  and  cheerful  views,  tend  to 
divert  the  mind  from  its  painful  contemplations,  and  at 
the  same  time  to  invigorate  the  physical  system  ;  whilst 
"kindness  and  firmness"  those  great  agents  in  governing 
and  directing  the  human  mind  in  all  phases  of  its  condi- 
tion, serve  to  guide  and  control  it,  in  its  struggles  to 
throw  off  the  shackles  of  darkness.  Confine  the  poor 
maniac  with  felons  and  criminals ;  instead  of  hearing 
the  accents  of  kindness,  let  him  hear  only  the  clanking 
of  his  chains;  instead  of  his  vision  being  greeted  with 


^> 


t'lie  appliances  of  a  cheerful  chamber  and  a  comfortable 
conch,  let  him  see  nothing  but  the  walls  and  grates  of 
his  dungeon, 'and  his  bed  of  straw  ;  instead  of  witness* 
ing  the.  impulses  of  feeling  hearts,  let  him  discover  that 
he  is  cut  oil' from  all  sympathy  of  his  race,  (for  strange 
as  it  may  seem,  his  perceptions  are  rather  quickened  than 
destroyed  by  his  malady,)  and  instead  of  subduing  the 
wild  passions  of  his  distempered  mind,  you  only  stamp 
it  with  a  conviction  of  his  degradation,  and  he  sinks 
i\ewn  in  hopeless  and  incurable  despair.  These  indis- 
pensable means  to  which  I  have  alluded,  cannot  be  se- 
cured in  the  busy  and  anxious  theatre  of  industry  and 
agitation,  in  which  the  world  is  engaged.  The  domestic 
hearth,  with  all  its  sympathies  and  kindness,  cannot 
command  them.  Then  you  must  resort  to  comparative- 
ly isolated  locations  ;  you  must  obtain  the  services  of 
those  who  devote  their  lives  exclusively  to  this  noble  and 
praise  worthy  vocation  ,  you  must  congregate,  those  un- 
fortunate victims,  where  time,  opportunity,  knowledge, 
and  experience  can  all  be  commanded  in  ministering  to 
their  wants. 

Whilst  the  balance  of  the  christian  world  is  moving  on 
in  these  noble  enterprises,  shall  North  Carolina,  our 
native  land,  where  repose  the  ashes  of  our  fathers,  and 
where  the  destiny  of  our  children  is  cast — shall  North 
Carolina  stand  still,  with  folded  arms  and  slumbering 
ryelids?  Shall  our  people  longer  bear  the  reproach  of  in- 
sensibility to  human  wo  ;  or  of  niggardliness,  in  refusing 
to  grant  a  pittance  of  that  bounty  with  which.kind  Hea- 
ven has  blessed  us,  for  the  purpose  of  lifting  that  dar!; 
curtain  which  shuts  out  the  light  of  reason  from  the  minds 
of  so  many  of  our  fellow  beings  ?  Shall  we,  as  the  cho- 
sen guardians  of  the  rights  and  interests  of  a  confiding 
people,  repose  so  little  trust  in  their  generosity,  their  hu- 
manity, their  justice,  as  to  fail  to  do  that,  which  appeals 
to  us  not  only  in  the  language  of  sympathy,  but  in  the 
stern  demands  of  duty  ?  Head  that  Memorial  now  lyin~ 
on  vour  desks,  to  which  is  affixed  the  nnmn  of  one  -  who  is 

»MJM5  l».  I-  T 1 1  \- . 


devoting  her  lite-  to  doing  good;  who  comes  among  us  as 
the  friend  of  the  unfortunate,  the  poor  and  the  needy ; 
who  is  an  ornament,  not  only  to  her  sex,  but  to  human 
nature  itself;  whose  meekness  and  gentleness  of  charac- 
ter, and  whose  labors,  fatigues  and  exposure  in  behalf  of 
suffering  humanity,  appeal  to  us,  by  all  the  ennobling 
considerations  of  chivalry  and  devotion  to  her  sex.  Read 
that  memorial,  the  unbribed  and  disinterested  tribute 
which  a  feeling  heart  pays  to  misfortune's  claims,  and 
you  will  there  see  our  duty  inscribed  in  language  which 
it  requires  a  heart  of  adamant  to  disregard.  You  there 
see  that  there  are  hundreds  within  the  borders  of  our 
State,  who  are  immured  in  noxious  cells,  inhaling  the  "va- 
pors of  dungeons,"  confined  with  felons,  and  dragging 
out  a  miserable  existence  on  beds  of  straw — and  for  no 
other  crime,  than  that  of  being  the  victims  of  an  afflict- 
ing dispensation  from  Heaven.  And  must  this  continue 
to  bo  ?  'T  is  true,  these  victims  of  calamity  cannot  ap- 
peal to  our  judgments  in  the  language  of  reason  ;  but 
they  appeal  to  our  hearts  in  the  tones  of  lamentation  and 
wo.  If  we  fail  to  perform  our  duty,  the  shriek  of  every 
maniac  in  our  borders  will  hereafter  sound  the  note  of 
reproach  upon  our  names.  Their  dismal  cries  and  awful 
groans  will  haunt  us  in  our  slumbers,  and  their  ghastly  vis- 
ages will  freeze  our  hearts  with  terror,  even  to  our  dying 
day.  Whilst  to  our  shame,  we  must  admit,  that  North 
Carolina  is  behind  most  of  her  sisters  in  the  great  phys- 
ical improvements  and  enterprises  of  the  age  ;  yet  it  has 
ever  been  our  boast,  that  in  all  the  attributes  of  the  private 
and  social  virtues,  we  acknowledge  no  superior.  Let  us 
now  prove  that  this  is  no  vain  and  idle  vaunting.  Whilst 
other  States  may  excel  us  in  enterprize,  in  wealth  and  in 
public  spirit,  yet  let  us  recollect,  in  the  language  of  a  la- 
mented son,  it  has  long  been  our  pride,  that  there  are 
none, 

Whose  doors  open  faster, 


At  the  knock  of  distress,  or  the  tale  of  disaster." 

Although  we  may  not  boast  of  our  populous  Cities  and 

2 


Commercial  Marts ;  although  we  may  not  have  as  many 
proud  Seminaries  of  learning  ;  although  we  may  not  cov- 
er our  surface  with  a  net- work  of  Rail  Roads  and  Canals  ; 
yet  let  us  prove  that  we  have  hearts  to  leel  for  misfortune, 
and  that  we  know  how  to  provide  for  the  private  wants 
and  personal  comforts  of  our  people,  if  we  are  somewhat 
regardless  of  their  public  pride  and  prosperity. 

I  am  aware  that  this  bill  may  be  objected  to  on  ac- 
count of  what  may  seem  to  be  the  magnitude  of  the  sum 
proposed  to  be  appropriated.  The  amount  is  not  large, 
compared  with  the  purposes  contemplated,  and  the  ben- 
efits to  be  realized.  It  cannot  be  less,  if  the  Institution 
is  to  answer  the  ends  designed.  If  we  are  to  provide  for 
the  insane  at  all,  we  must  make  provision  for  the  whole 
of  them.  From  the  best  information  that  can  be  obtain- 
ed, there  will  probably  be  not  less  than  250  patients  in 
the  State.  And  the  same  information  authorises  the  con- 
clusion, that  a  building  necessary  for  the  comfortable 
provision  of  that  number  cannot  be  built  for  much  less 
than  $100,000.  I  learn  that  about  ten  years  since,  the 
State  of  Tennessee — that  noble  daughter  of  the  Old  North 
State,  who  here  presents  to  her  mother  such  a  glorious 
example — erected  an  institution  for  the  insane  at  a  cost 
of  about  25  or  30  thousand  dollars.  It  was  found  to  be 
utterly  unfit  for  the  purposes  intended — and  one  year 
since,  the  Legislature  of  that  State  concluded  to  abandon 
it  as  an  outlay  of  so  much  money  lost,  and  made  an  ap- 
propriation of  {$100,000  for  the  erection  of  a  new  one. 
Let  us  take  warning  by  this  example.  If  we  attempt  to 
provide  for  the  insane  at  all,  let  us  do  it  in  a  style  com- 
mensurate with  our  pride,  our  character  and  our  ability  ; 
above  all,  commensurate  with  the  wants  of  our  people. 
Gentlemen  should  recollect  that  a  building  of  this  sort  is 
not  like  a  private  dwelling.  Space,  air,  prospect,  pecu- 
liar arrangement  are  indispensable.  Let  us  then,  instead 
of  wasting  $30,000  or  050,000  to  no  purpose,  expend 
what  is  requisite  ;  and  there  it  is  for  generations,  com« 
plete  in  all  its  parts,  the  memorial  of  our  generosity,  the 
pride  of  the  State,  the  asylum  of  the  unfortunate. 


II 

So  for  from  this  Institution  being  objectionable  on  ac- 
count of  the  burthen  it  will  impose  on  the  people,  it  is 
strougly  recommended  on  the  score  of  economy.     Have 
gentlemen  ever  turned  their  attention  to  the  sums  annu- 
ally expended  in  some  of  the  counties  of  the  State,  for 
keeping  in  confinement  the  indigent  insane,  and  in  oth- 
ers, by  way  of  allowance  to  their  destitute  parents  and 
friends,  who  take  care  of  them?     This  charge  belongs  to 
County  expense,  and  comes  out  of  the  County  tax  ;  but 
still,  the  people  have  to  pay  it.     And  I  doubt  very  much, 
whether  the  tax  proposed  by  this  bill,  which  can  contin- 
ue but  a  few  years,  even  if  it  were  perpetual,  would  bear 
more  heavily  on  the  people  than  the  charge  already  ex- 
isting, on  account  of  the  indigent  insane.     This  expense 
is  now  incurred  in  keeping  them  in  prison,  beyond  the 
reach  of  relief ;  we  propose  to  convert  it  into  the  means 
of  ministering  to  their  comfort,  and  restoring  them  to 
reason.     As  an  example  of  this  false  notion  of  economy, 
I  learn  there  is  a  maniac  in  the  prison  of  Stokes  County, 
the  keeping  of  whom  for  several  years  has  cost  the  Coun- 
ty some  $1600  or  §1700  :  and  this  poor  unfortunate  be- 
ing is,  no  doubt,  in  a  worse  condition  now,  than  when  he 
first  entered  the  door  of  his  prison — perhaps  beyond  the 
reach  of  restoration  forever.     How  much  better,  wiser, 
and  more  humane  is  it,  to  convert  this  annual  charge  up- 
on the  respective  counties,  now  expended  in  aggravating 
the  sufferings  of  the  afflicted,  into  a  means  of  ministering 
to  their  comfort  and  aiding  in   their  relief.     Let  gentle- 
men recollect,  that  it  is  the  taxes  for  County  purposes,, 
that  are  felt  most  grievously  by  the  people.     As  a  mere 
question  of  economy,  then,  we  may  well  conclude,  that 
such  an  institution  will  lessen  the  burthen  now  imposed 
for  the  relief  of  the  poor,  to  as  great  or  even  a  greater 
extent  than  will  be  necessary  for  its  establishment  and 
successful  operation.     In  considering  the  item  of  expense, 
we  should  also  recollect,  that  the  more  comfortable  and 
commodious  this  institution  may  be,  the  better  may  we 
expect  it  to  support  itself.     Whilst  we  provide  for  taking' 
care  of  the  poor,  the  wealthy  who  may  seeek  an  asylum 


12 

beneath  its  shelter,  are  expected  to  pay  for  the  benefits 
received.     If  then,  you  make°a  meagre  appropriation  for 
the  erection  of  a  building  that  will  barely  answer  for  the 
wants  of  the  destitute,  we  cannot  expect  those  who  are 
wealthy  or  in  even  comfortable  circumstances,  to  place 
their  friends  there.     They  will  resort  to  other  States  for 
that  comfort  and  relief  they  cannot  find  at  home.     By 
examining  the  reports  from   these  institutions  in  other 
States,  we  find  that  many  of  them  not  only  go  a  great 
way  towards  paying  their  own  expenses,  but  in  some 
few  instances  they  have  actually  yielded  a  nett  income 
besides.     Let  us  not  then,  by  a  false  economy,  throw  a- 
way  what  we  do  appropriate.     Let  us  not,  for  the  sake 
of  saving  a  few  thousands  now,  run  the  risk  of  a  failure 
in  the  purpose  contemplated.     Let  us  erect  such  an  in- 
stitution as  will  answer  the  wants  of  all  our  insane,  both 
the  rich  and  the  poor  ;  that  the  former  may  be  induced  to 
seek  that  relief  from  it.  which  will  enable  us,  in  a  great 
measure,  to  take  care  of  the  latter. 

As  to  the  method  proposed  in  the  bill  before  us,  of 
raising  the  money  necessary  for  the  erection  of  this  insti- 
tution, by  a  slight  increase  of  the  tax  on  real  estate  and  on 
polls,  I  think  it  eminently  proper,  and  by  far  the  most 
sure  and  practicable.  'Tis  true,  it  falls  upon  all  classes 
and  interests  in  society.  And  it  is  right  that  it  should — 
not  only  because  it  is  intended  for  the  benefit  of  all  classes 
but  because  every  one  should  be  allowed  to  contribute  ia 
proportion  to  his  ability,  to  what  will  belong  to  all.  It  is 
right  that  the  poor  man  as  well  as  the  rich  should  feel 
that  having  aided  in  its  establishment,  he  and  his  chil- 
dren have  a  vested  interest  in  its  benefits.  It  is  for  no 
temporary  purpose,  it  is  for  no  sectional  advantages.  It 
is  for  posterity.  It  is  right  then,  that  the  land  which  is 
immovable,  that  the  permanent  wealth  and  capital  of  the 
country,  should  bear  the  charge.  Again,  the  method  pro- 
posed is  certain  and^definite.  Make  a  charge  upon  the 
treasury  generally,  and  I  fear,  that  after  providing  for 
«ur  liabilities,  which  must  be  paid,  nothing  will  be  left 


for  the  purposes  of  charity.     This  methodof  raising  the 
money  is  recommended    by  another  consideration.     The 
people  will  submit  to  it    without  murmur  or  complaint. 
It  is  not  like  imposing  a  tax  for  any  sectional  improve- 
ment,  the  benefits  of  which  may  be  local,  and  against 
which  the  feelings  and  prejudices  of  other  sections  may 
be  aroused.     It  is  for  no  purpose  of  doubtful  utility.     It 
appeals  to  all  the  nobler  and  better  feelings   of  our  na- 
ture, and  every   generous  heart  in  the   State   must  ac- 
knowledge its  importance.     The  demagogue  who  prates 
so  much  about  the  rights  of  the  poor,   will  be  disarmed, 
and  hissed  from  the  stump,  when  he  attempts  to  excite 
against  us  the  prejudices  of  the  poor,  by  crying  out,  tax- 
es! taxes  !     It  is  mainly  for  the   wants  of  the  poor,  that 
we  now  propose  to  provide.     I  would  not,  if  I  could,  de- 
prive the  poor  man  of  the  privilege  of  aiding  in  the  erec- 
tion of  this  institution.     The  poor  man  will  scarcely  feel 
the  addition  of  the  slight  tax  proposed.     Small  as  may 
be  the  pittance  paid  by  the  poor  man,  yet   it  is  his  right 
to  contribute  it,  and  it    would   be   a  hardship  to  deprive 
him  of  it.     Like  the  mite  that  constituted  the  offering  of 
the  poor  widow  in  the  Scripture,  it  will  be  hallowed  by 
the  feelings  and  motives  that  actuated  the  giver. 

I  am  aware  it  may  be  said,'there  is  no  pressing  neces« 
gity  for  our  founding  an  institution    for  the  insane  in  this 
State  ;  inasmuch  as  the  number  of  such  institutions  in 
other  States  affords  every  facility  and   convenience  for 
the  relief  of  the  afflicted  among  us.     The  mere  statement 
of  this  objection  carries  its  own   refutation  with  it.  In  the 
first    place,     our    State    pride    should     revolt    at    this 
idea  of  dependence  upon  the  liberality  and  benevolence 
of  our  sister  States.     How  can  we  reconcile  ourselves  to 
the  thought,  of  relying  upon  the  labors  of  others,  for  those 
blessings  which  are  equally  within  our  reach,  as  the  re- 
ward of  a  discharge  of  public  duty?     How  can  we  ab- 
solve ourselves   from  the  obligations    of  this   duty,  by 
availing  ourselves  of  the  means  afforded  by  those  who 
have  performed  theirs,  instead  of  their  reasoning  on  the 
false  premises  thus  advanced  ?     Jn  the  second  place,  this 


ft. 

reliance  on  the  institutions  of  other  States,  provides  for 
the  rich  only,  who  can  afford  to  bear  the  expense  ;  whilst 
it  leaves  the  poor  and  needy  to  suffer.  And  it  is  raainly 
for  the  poor  and  the  destitute  that  we  are  called  on  to 
provide.  'Tis  true,  they  have  nothing  to  give  in  return 
but  the  tribute  of  grateful  hearts;  a)  id  what  higher  re- 
ward ought  a  benificent  government  to  desire.  The 
duty  of  government  to  provide  for  the  physical  wants  of 
the  poor,  is  recognised  and  observed  by  all  Christian 
Countries  ;  and  in  our  own  State,  the  law  makes  provis- 
ion for  that.  If  it  is  the  duty  of  the  Legislature  to  pro- 
vide for  the  corporal  wants  of  the  posr,  how  much 
greater  the  obligation  to  provide  for  their  mental  suffer- 
ing. For,  what  are  hunger,  nakedness  and  want  com- 
pared with  the  loss  of  reason  ?  What  are  all  the  tortures 
of  the  quivering  flesh,  compared  with  those  of  the  brain  ; 
through  which  are  "  whirling  the  thousand  shapes  of 
fury"? 

"  For  pleasures,   hopes,  affection  gone, 
The  wretch  may  bear,  and  yet  live  on  ; 
But  there's  a  blank  repose  in  this, 
A  calm  stagnation,  that  were  bliss 
To  the  keen,  burning,  harrowing  pain, 
Thats'  felt  throughout  the  breast  and  brain." 

In  the  third  place,  this  dependance  on  the  institutions 
of  other  States,  considered  as  a  question  of  political  econ- 
om3r,  is  decidedly  objectionable.  It  carries  the  money, 
and  that  to  no  inconsiderable  extent,  from  our  borders  ; 
not  to  come  back  to  us  through  the  regular  channels  of 
commercial  exchange,  but  keeping  up  in  proportion  to  its 
expenditure,  a  constant  drain  upon  our  circulating  medi- 
um, the  current  of  which  has  no  reflux.  In  the  fourth 
place,  a  reliance  upon  distant  institutions  prevents  that 
resort  to  early  remedial  treatment,  which  experience  has 
fully  established  to  be  so  absolutely  necessary  to  the  re- 
storation of  the  insane.  Distance,  expense,  exposure 
both  to  the  accidents  of  travel  and  to  the  public  eye,  de- 
ter the  friends  of  the  unfortunate  from  an  early  resort  to 
distant  asylums,  until  delay  frequently  places  the  suffer- 


15 

er  beyond  the  reach  of  cure.  How  necessary  then,  to 
have  the  means  of  relief  near  at  hand,  to  have  an  asylum 
of  our  own,  inviting  the  wretched  to  its  hospitable  shel- 
ter ;  a  structure  built  at  the  public  charge,  in  which  eve- 
ry freeman  in  the  land  may  feel  he  has  an  interest. 

Under  these  considerations,  Mr.  Speaker,  can  we  doubt 
as  to  our  duty?  And  if  we  know  that  duty,  shall  we 
fail  to  perform  it  ?  Shall  we  hesitate  to  impose  the  slight 
tax  proposed,  lest  heartless  demagogues  may  cry  out 
against  taxation,  and  attempt  to  inflame  the  public  mind  ? 
Sir,  the  people  will  sustain  us.  Our  constituents  have 
hearts — hearts  of  sympathy  and  of  feeling,  and  to  them 
will  we  appeal.  We  shall  receive  their  gratitude,  in- 
stead of  their  censure.  Think  of  how  many  minds  now 
shrouded  in  darkness,  we  may  be  the  means  of  restoring 
to  the  light  of  knowledge  and  of  christian  hope.  Think 
of  the  many  whose  awful  ravings  of  despair,  we  may  con- 
vert into  grateful  invocations  of  blessings  on  our  heads, 
Think  of  how  many  anxious  and  watchful  mothers'  and 
sisters'  cheeks ,  that  are  now  suffused  with  the  tears  of 
sorrow,  we  may  cheer  and  enliven  with  the  smiles  of  joy. 
Think  of  how  many  a  fond  father's  heart  now  sunk  in  de. 
spondency,  at  the  contemplation  of  the  suffering  of  an 
afflicted  son  or  daughter,  will  leap  with  joy  at  the  suc- 
cessful issue  of  our  labors.  Although  the  thanks  and  the 
prayers  of  their  grateful  hearts  may  never  reach  our  ears, 
yet  like  holy  incense  they  will  ascend  to  Heaven,  calling 
down  the  favors  of  Almighty  goodness  on  our  efforts. 
Who  knows  but  in  future  time,  some  son  or  daughter,  or 
more  remote  descendant  of  one  of  ourselves,  may  be  over- 
taken with  misfortune,  may  pine  in  penury  and  want, 
may  be  turned  with  a  rude  hand  from  the  door  of  plenty, 
may  be  exposed  to  the  peltings  of  the  storm,  may  suffer 
the  gnawing  pangs  of  hunger,  may  feel  the  horrors  of 
ignominy  and  shame — till  the  brain  reels  under  the 
shock,  and  the  mind  becomes  eclipsed  with  maniac  dark- 
ness. Yes  sir,  who  of  us  knows,  but  that  hereafter  some 
child  of  misery,  in  whose  veins  shall  flow  the  same  blood 
that  now  pulsates  in  our  hearts,  may  be  incarcerated  in 


the  felon's  dungeon,  wear  the  chafing  fetters  of  confine- 
ment, and  vent  their  unheeded  and  maniac  cries  to  prison 
walls  ?  In  the  dispensation  of  Providence  this  may 
take  place.  Then  we  are  appealed  to  not  only  by  every 
consideration  of  patriotic  pride,  of  representative  duty, 
and  of  an  expanded  benevolence  and  christian  philan- 
thropy—but we  are  appealed  to  by  what  may  be  wt»nts 
and  sufferings  of  our  own  flesh  and  blood,  to  act,  and  to  act 
promptly.  Let  us  lay  the  foundation  of  an  institution,  to 
which  our  posterity  can  point  with  pride,  whenever  they 
mention  our  names.  Let  us  rear  a  structure  beneath 
whose  dome,  heaven  born  charity  shall  set  up  her  altar, 
and  benevolence  erect  her  shrine — within  whose  walls, 
the  unfortunate  of  posterity  shall  find  a  refuge  and  a 
home,  when  we  shall  be  no  more.  We  shall  thus  ereet 
to  our  memories  a  monument  more  imperishable  than 
one  of  brass;  and  we  shall  inscribe  on  grateful  hearts, 
in  letters  of  enduring  affection,  the  name  of  her,*  from 
whose  efforts  are  issuing  streams  of  goodness,  that  are 
beginning;  to  overflow  for  the  benefit  of  mankind. 


*This  noble  «nd  praise-worthy  woman,  (Miss  D.  L.  Dix,  of 
New  York)  has  long  been  devoting  her  life  and  fortune  to  the 
relief  of  suffering  humanity,  especially  of  the  indigent  insane. 
She  has,  by  her  unremitting  exertions  and  personal  appeals, 
succeeded  in  inducing  the  Legislatuies  of  many  of  the  States 
to  make  provision  for  the  insane  ;  and  is  now  urging  upon 
Congress  to  appropriate  five  millions  of  acres  of  the  public 
lands  to  this  humane  purpose.  May  her  efforts  be  crowned 
with  success. 


